Ilisu Protest at Global Dams Conference
Initiative to Keep Hasankeyf Alive - Fools of Munzur - Association for Conservation of Munzur Valley and Natural Life - Yusufeli Culture Association WEED International Rivers Network
Antalya, Turkey, May 29, 2007
The gap between what the International Hydropower Association says and what it does is being highlighted by dam threatened people, who are protesting at the organization’s world congress on sustainable hydropower in Antalya, Turkey. A huge banner declaring “No development, but destruction by many dams in Turkey” greets IHA members outside the convention centre.
“Members of the International Hydropower Association, such as the Austrian company VA Tech (Andritz), pretend here in Antalya that they care about people and the environment,” said Diren Özkan, speaker of the Initiative to Keep Hasankeyf Alive. “But in reality, they are building dams in Turkey that will destroy our cultural heritage and displace tens of thousands of people.”
Activists from the Turkish Yusufeli Culture Association, the Association for Conservation of Munzur Valley, Fools of Munzur and the Initiative to Keep Hasankeyf have written to the president of the International Hydropower Association, Dr. Dogan Altinbilek, a Turkish national, to demand that VA Tech (Andritz), a member of the IHA, withdraw from International Hydropower Association will deliberate on issues such as good practice of hydropower development, hydropower and climate change and the social and environmental performance of large dams. “The International Hydropower Association jeopardizes its good name and its credibility by making big public statements about sustainability while supporting their members in building large dams that destroy rivers, forests, fields, archaeological sites and people’s homes,” said Mehmet Bidav from the Association for Conservation of Munzur Valley.
“It is not enough just to talk about best practices for the hydropower industry,” said Ann Kathrin Schneider of International Rivers Network. “The implementation of standards and the reality on the ground matters. We need less talk and more action. Affected people and the environment need to be put centre stage in all decisions related to the construction of dams. This is the only way to avoid the dam disasters of the past and the present.”
Contacts at the International Hydropower Conference in Antalya
Diren Özkan, Initiative to Keep Hasankeyf Alive, (mobile) + 0090-5358966777
Ann-Kathrin Schneider, International Rivers Network, (mobile) +49 163 475 1284, akschneider@irn.org
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Weltwirtschaft, Ökologie & Entwicklung e.V. (WEED) www.weed-online.org
Heike Drillisch, Berlin heike.drillisch@weed-online.org,
Tel.: +49-(0)30-275 82 249, Fax: +49-(0)30-275 96 928
In other Ilisu protest actions, Bank Track and WEED have cautioned international banks against investing in the Ilisu dam project. Commercial banks were warned not to become involved in investing or financing the controversial Ilisu Dam project located in Turkey, outlining massive stakeholder opposition to construction of the dam and the failure of the project developers and supporting Export Credit Agencies to meet international standards. The groups warned that commercial banks will face extensive reputational risks if they become involved in the project.
Information on the Yusufeli dam project can be found at the European Rivers Network web site.